I remember learning about plants and photosynthesis in the 4th grade. There was something so fascinating about how the whole process worked. It was so simple, a plant without thinking or doing anything more than existing, stands in it’s place in the sun and absorbs the light it was made to hold, and then convert water and carbon dioxide into oxygen. It was one of the most complex things I’d ever learned up to that point in my life, but recognizing the essential role that photosynthesis played for me to be able to live and breathe was mind blowing. Our humanity is fragile and intricate. Could you imagine having to be responsible for making your own heart beat or having to generate the right exchange for carbon dioxide and oxygen in order to breathe? Everything that we require for living exists outside of our control. We can’t make the Earth rotate, the sun shine, or even create the oxygen we need to live. All that we need has already been provided to us by the Lord God, who so graciously created every biochemical process to work for our good, so we can live the life He so intentionally planned for us; all we have to do is stand in our place and share the light we were made to hold.
It’s really easy to overlook the goodness and intention the Lord provides for us daily in the simplicity of living. Between the commitments of family, work and life in general it can be easy to become overwhelmed with the need to do, and miss out on the gift of just getting to be. 1 Timothy 6:6-8 reminds us of the freedom that comes from simple living and learning to just be. It’s a humbling truth to let settle when we’re reminded that we brought nothing into the world and we can’t take anything with us. Literally, no amount of money, material wealth or substance can make you more of a person, because the things that are essential to living are outside of your control. As time tells the story of our lives, what matters most is how we use our time and resources to build and bless around us. It’s a simple but complex truth to hold, all we have to do is be who we were made to be nothing more, nothing less. Contentment is the word Paul uses in 1 Timothy 6 to explain the blessing of just being. Contentment is an internal and external state; when we recognize our position (where we are, what season we’re in and how far we’ve come) and the provision (what we have and how we’ve been equipped) to accomplish our purpose (what we’ve been made to do) we come to a place of contentment. Paul says contentment is of “great gain,” there is genuine value in the simplicity of understanding our position, provision and purpose and simply being that.
1 Timothy 6 is not only a reminder but also a warning. The struggles and troubles we encounter usually come because somewhere we lost sight of where to best use our time and resources for our position and purpose. Often, the obligations and expectations we place on ourselves and try to live up to cause us to pursue things that crowd our lives, vying for our attention and energy and move us away from our position. When we focus, commit our time, or choose to pursue things that don’t align with our position or purpose we lose contentment. Paul reminds us that desires for money, riches, and material things cause us to be easily distracted away from the freedom of just being and overshadow our position, provision and seek to destroy our purpose. This is when we suffer disappointment, ruin and destruction, because we are fixated on things outside of ourselves that don’t bring contentment.
How do we get to a place of contentment?
Simplification. When we inventory and gauge where our time and resources are going and whether they are reflecting our position, provision and purpose it is easy to see if we are doing what brings contentment or breeds disappointment.
Simplifying requires:
That we are honest with ourselves, evaluating whether or not we are growing or being held hostage by cycles and thinking that are preventing us from evolving and standing fully in our place.
That we don’t place value in things and titles; when we are focused on building and blessing around us the resources we have don’t take priority over people or purpose. When we are consumed with money and getting things we miss out on learning to be appreciative for what we have.
That we are looking to hold and have goodness to share with others. The way we use or time and our talents (gifts) is supposed to leave a legacy. People should be better because of who are in our homes, in our communities and on our jobs this is how our purpose outlives us.
